


Marki Warner

by thismeanswarnerz



Category: Animaniacs
Genre: Abandonment, Childhood Trauma, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Fluff and Angst, Original Character(s), Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Separation Anxiety, Sibling Bonding, Unhealthy Coping Mechanisms
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-22
Updated: 2021-02-22
Packaged: 2021-03-12 13:27:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,464
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29635329
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thismeanswarnerz/pseuds/thismeanswarnerz
Summary: The other Warner sister finally sees her siblings again after 22 excruciating years apart.
Kudos: 5





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Marki is 13, she's named after the TradeMark in the WB logo, but most people think it's because she also has 2 beauty marks.  
> This takes place some time during the reboot, I dunno, don't ask, I only write to cheer myself up so there's not really a plot. Just sibs being sibs and trying to adjust back into life after being apart for 22 years..  
> This is only like my 3rd fic ever.

"You guys're back, huh?" Marki stated flatly. She fell to her knees in front of the trio, mind melting as she laid eyes upon the people most dear to her, those who she had missed immeasurably. A lump formed in her throat as all their eyes welled up, a 20 year dam about to burst. They smiled at each other and kneeled down to her level, falling into a hug. The four of them sobbed uncontrollably in the middle of the Warner Bros. lot, possessed by emotion, and clinging to each other for dear life. It had been 22 years since Marki had seen her siblings, she hadn't known where they were or if they were going to come back. She knew the show had ended and the movie had been completed, but she held the assumption that they would all just hang out in their tower like before. However, there's a certain thing folks say about assuming. Marki hadn't stayed in the tower very long after she realized that her siblings weren't coming back, it was so cold without them, so barren and lonely… unbearably silent. She wasn't exactly sure why she was able to stay around while they were in "suspended animation", as the studio had told her. She felt as if she was being tortured, living every single day in Hell for the last 22 years, not ever receiving a coherent explanation from Plotz. Now her siblings were back, but she couldn't help but feel like this was some kind of bittersweet dream, where she would wake up and be alone again. They were all together crying on the warm asphalt in view of the Water Tower, their home. The setting sun painted the sky a glorious ombre of orange and soft pink, illuminating the heartfelt reunion. They continued to hug and hold one another as they each caught their breath. Yakko was the first one able to get out a coherent sentence, "We're here, we're here." He whispered, reassuring himself of the fact as well as his siblings. He took Marki's hands in his own, and she held on tightly as if he would slip away if she let go. Wakko pinched himself and then the rest of his siblings, eliciting a yelp from each, it seemed they were all wondering if it was a dream. "Where have you been?" Marki managed to squeak out between gasps. "Well…" Wakko began in a nearly broken tone, "we were kinda like… Frozen? But not cold frozen, I think they called it-" "Suspended animation." Dot interrupted, her teeth gritting as she spat out the words. It was at this point the siblings snapped out of their trance and noticed a concerned crowd gathering around them, some of them looked less concerned and rather excited to see the Warner Brothers and their sister Dot back. "Let's go home, sibs." Yakko said quietly, gesturing toward the growing crowd. The quartet stood up and made their way up the ladder with still slightly wobbly knees. Once at the top they took in the view they had missed so much. Not one of them had been up here in 2 decades, there was so much of the landscape that had changed, but it was still a heartachingly familiar sight. After a moment the Warner siblings gave a collective sigh and turned to the door, which Yakko had some trouble getting open. They all joined in and helped pull the rusting door open, making a loud creaaaaak. "It's just how I left it." Marki stepped in, looking around and feeling her heart sink, remembering how helplessly lonely she had felt. The entire place was a mess, a clear display of the depression she was suffering through before she finally left for good. She turned to her siblings who eyed the place in disgust, they certainly had not left the tower looking this abhorrent. "Did… did you live here after we were put in stasis?" Yakko asked in a hushed tone. "Y-yeah." Marki replied meekly and rubbed her hand on her neck, not making eye contact. They all made their way past piles of trash and clothes to their old bedroom, the one they all had shared. Yakko, Wakko, and Dot's beds were immaculate, just how they had left them. Marki's, on the other hand, was on the opposite end of the room, mattress ripped to shreds with springs sticking out. Clearly she really had taken their absence as worse as she could have without harming anyone, she had been rightfully upset, but obviously did not employ the most healthy of coping mechanisms. "Wow! You kept our beds made and clean?" Dot asked Marki, trying to lighten the mood a little. She responded in a shaky voice, "I-I had wanted you guys to be able to have your beds when you came back. I wanted you to be comfortable, safe, happy, HERE." That last word hitting them all like a sack of anvils, finally understanding that she had completely fallen apart without them there, not just that she had been sad, but that she had been traumatized. Dot took her sister's hand and held the back of it to her cheek, nuzzling against it softly. "Thank you, sib." Yakko tried his best to keep a calm voice, putting a hand on her shoulder and clenching tightly for a moment before letting go. Marki smiled, eyes filled with tears, she took a deep breath and reminded herself that they were here now, they were back. The Warner siblings unanimously decided it would be best if they went right to cleaning up, trying not to gag as they found increasingly revolting garbage the further they went. After hours of cleaning the tower was starting to look slightly more like itself again, although most of the appliances were beyond repair from 20 years of neglect. When the clock had reached 9:30 the siblings all piled onto the old couch to take a well deserved rest. A lot had been thrown away, but there was still a lot of garbage lying around, for just one kid Marki really had made quite a mess. "I'm so happy we're back." Wakko said quietly, laying his head on Marki's lap, allowing her to pet him. "You sound just ecstatic, Wakko." Dot retorted as she lay draped along the back of the dilapidated couch. "Sibs, I think we got to go furniture shopping tomorrow." Yakko added after assessing the current state of the furnishings. Dot sat up and adjusted her position to lay on her stomach, suddenly interested. "Ooooh, what color scheme should we do?" She said kicking her feet back and forth, her chin propped up by her hands. "Well," Marki began, rolling out a poster of different interior design ideas. "We have pretty many options, personally I'm thinking a fun 70s style vibe to brighten things up. However! If ya wanta do like a 1920s dark brown and green, midcentury cerulean and carmine, or pastel! Or if you guys want something real fancy like Rococo we can change the decor as well!" "Anything but what they call 'modern'." Yakko quipped before continuing excitedly, "We can make a whole day out of it. Hit up a bunch of different shops!" The younger three beamed at the idea of a day out, and he reflected their grins, all seemingly in agreement on the plan. "Alright then, sibs!" Yakko began commandingly, "We've got a big day tomorrow! Time to get some rest." Wakko's smile faded quickly as he remembered the eviscerated mattress in the next room. "Marki? What about your bed? Where are you gonna sleep tonight?" He said in a concerned tone, his face turning into a grimace. The siblings looked at Marki before she quietly stated, "Well I er- I did sleep out here on the couch for a while so it won't be any issue, Wak." She gave him a sweet and reassuring smile, which made his expression relax letting his tongue stick out again. He latched onto her side lovingly, making her chuckle. Dot yawned in response to Yakko's command and jumped off the back of the couch. "Love you guys, g'night!" She exclaimed, before disappearing into the bedroom. Yakko got up and peeled Wakko off the elder sister, and nudged him toward the bedroom. Wakko took the hint and said, "See you in the morning!" before begrudgingly making his way to the door. Marki called to him, "Love you baby bro!" Yakko smiled at her and sat down next to her on the couch, he stared forward at the broken television. Finally he spoke, "Are you sure you wanna sleep out here? Any of us would be happy to sleep next to you again." "I'm sure. I dunno that after such a long time alone… if I would be comfortable." Yakko looked at her with soft concern, "It was rough, huh?" Marki met his gaze, she wanted more than anything to sob again. However, she didn't want to concern their younger siblings, so she controlled her breathing the best she could. She closed her eyes and nodded her head, inhaling and exhaling deeply, trying to maintain composure. Yakko didn't say anything back, he knew anything he did or said would throw off her concentration and make her a weeping mess. So instead of pushing any further he stood up, walked over and placed a kiss on the top of her head. "We love you." He said in a whisper so small that it felt as though it wasn't meant to be heard. He left to join his siblings in their room, leaving Marki alone. After a few minutes of breathing exercises she had calmed down, she stayed on the couch just staring ahead vacantly. Eventually, she turned off the lights and pulled her old blanket from under the couch, she covered up and rested her eyes.


	2. Not a wink.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A nightmare for one, a seemingly restless night for three, a cuddle party for all four!  
> (Shorter but more angsty.)

It was 2:43am. The tower was deathly silent, not one of the Warner's were making a sound. Then Marki let out an involuntary yelp and bolted straight up from her sleep, clutching hopelessly at her blanket for some sort of anchor. Fear consumed her as she tried to get her bearings, being woken up by nightmares was something that happened to her regularly, but it was always a discombobulating experience. She was panting and in a daze she looked around, she was in the tower, seemingly alone, surrounded by the castle of filth she had constructed. The false terror that she was back in the tower alone and never to see her siblings again began to swallow her whole. In her mind she was back in Hell, again. Ugly sobbing accompanied by nearly silent pained screams filled the room, letting nothing but soul wrenching loneliness envelope the child on the couch, absolutely lost in grief like countless times before.  
*Click* The light flicked on, causing Marki to freeze in absolute shock. "W-what happened? Hey are you okay? Marki?" Dot's voice rang through the room, banishing the fear that had previously dominated. The youngest rushed over, sitting next to her sister on the couch, rubbing her back soothingly with her right hand as the left gripped the elder's forearm, anchoring her back to reality. Marki breathlessly counted to calm herself down as Dot comforted her patiently, still slightly terrified of the outburst. "What happened?" Dot repeated in a calmer tone once her sister's breathing had steadied. "What's the matter?" Yakko stood in the doorway to the bedroom, Wakko by his side. They all looked tired and disheveled, as if none of them had gotten a solid wink in years. "I -er," Marki started sheepishly, "I thought I was alone again, that you were still gone and I was still here by myself… Like before." Her puffy red eyes looked at each of her siblings with a sense of embarrassment, as if her fears weren't justified. Dot moved her hand to stroke Marki's ears down softly, causing her to relax further. There was almost nothing in the world Marki had missed more, besides her siblings in general, than physical affection from said siblings. "I couldn't hear any of you snore or anything." She added as her brothers made their way over to the couch. "None of us were sleeping." Yakko admitted sitting down next to Dot, allowing Wakko to situate himself on the other side of Marki. "Whether it be 'cause of stasis, or the juxtaposition of being back here after so long, I doubt any of us would be able to sleep peacefully tonight." Wakko looked over at him confused, "I just couldn't hear the fridge running, that used to always put me right to sleep." He explained, a little annoyed from Yakko's assumptions. Dot and Yakko chuckled at him softly. "How about we all try and catch our zzz's out here sibs?" Yakko proposed, tugging on Marki's blanket to get her to share, to which she happily obliged. The four shared agreeing smiles before Wakko turned out the light and climbed under the blanket to snuggle with his siblings. After about an hour of squirming and bickering they were all settled in the most comfortable position the dingy couch individually offered. One by one the snoring began, a comforting hum filling the room as they drifted off to a well deserved slumber.


	3. Breffass time!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Look... I didn't really expect this to end up being a whole chapter about Wakko buying snacks from the lot's commissary... But sometimes it do be like that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I.... Didn't proofread this.  
> (I did however learn that paragraph breaks transfer over from Google docs)

As always, Wakko was the first one awake, because as he would say, "You can't sleep on a half-empty stomach!" He would never admit it to his siblings but he also enjoyed the serenity of silence that overtook the world just before the sun would break over the hills. There were things he could do without shame at this time, he could listen to the radio, including his normal talk shows without interruption. Though, that was before, he wouldn't even know most of the stations anymore, let alone their hosts... 

He sat up from the floor, where he had apparently ended up at some point in the night, in one of the only spots left devoid of debris. His sleeping siblings lay on the couch, limbs entangled in what seemed like extremely uncomfortable contortions, still snoring softly. The fond smile growing on his lips was slapped away by a pang of hunger, as his stomach rumbled audibly. Remembering that there likely wasn't any food that hadn't expired within the last 20 years, Wakko wondered if the lot commissary was still operational. If it wasn't, he could at least grab some snacks for everyone from a vending machine. Since, from what he saw so far, there were still plenty of vending machines in use. Truly a timeless mechanism. After contemplating for a moment, he got up to get his emergency funds from his sock drawer. 

Careful not to wake his siblings he snuck out the door and started across the lot toward where the commissary used to be. A purple hue hung in the sky, a sign the sun would soon rise and bring with it another day together. The lot was fairly silent at 6am, most stages didn't start filming until later in the day, at least that hadn't changed. Wakko found the cafe in the same spot as it had been, his stomach reminded him he was hungry with another rumble. 

He peeked through the window, his tongue and face pressed against the glass as he looked inside. On the far right side of the room he spotted the cashier, exhaustedly entranced by the phone that illuminated their face. There wasn't much available yet, since it was still so early, the cooks probably wouldn't arrive until around 7:00 to start serving breakfast. This left only snacks, the brightly lit vending machines caught his eye on the other side of the room, inviting him inside. 

He stepped inside, the bell from the door startled the cashier who fumbled with their phone, eventually letting it fall on the register. They then shyly proclaimed a "Good morning!" with a smile, which Wakko returned with his own goofy grin. His grin dissipated as he looked inside the machine, "A dollar fifty?! For a candy bar?" He shouted, taken aback. Had things really gotten that expensive in 22 years? 

The cashier chuckled a bit too loudly causing him to glare at them, a shocked expression stuck on his face. "The machines are always priced high, kiddo. It's only 75 cents if you buy it from the register." The cashier explained, which was a better deal but still quite expensive for a small candy bar. Wakko viewed the treats for sale at the register, settling on as many different varieties of sticky buns and danishes as he could carry. 

"Alright kid, your total is $51.48." They said as they packed a paper bag with the sweets. The little boy whimpered as he solemnly handed the worker more than half of the cash he had balled up in his pocket, most of the paper being almost unrecognizably wrinkled. After counting the cash twice to make sure it was the right amount they handed off the bag, and Wakko politely waved as he walked out the door with his bounty. 

He was home in no time, eager to have his first snack in 22 years. The rusty door squeaked as he snuck back in, letting the first few rays of morning light through the threshold and onto the dirty floor, before it was carefully closed. 

He emptied the bag on the recently cleared table, instinctively grabbing for one of the cinnamon rolls and tearing the packaging open with his teeth. Before he could savor the taste he realized he had devoured both the plastic wrapper and the snack, shrugging it off he followed suit with a few more. He wasn't full, but his hunger was satiated, and more importantly he wanted there to be some left for his siblings when they awoke. While he was waiting for them he decided to clean up around the kitchen a little more, throwing even old dishes and utensils into a large black trash bag along with the rubbish that littered the area. 

Dot was the first to join him, "What is all this?" She asked groggily while rubbing her eyes. "Breffass!" Wakko responded happily. Her eyes lit up at the thought of food after so long, and she rushed to the table, not as excited to see junk food, but it was better than nothing. She picked up a few different varieties, carefully unwrapping each. Dot ate the first "real" food she'd had in 20 years, revelling in the way the sugar coated her tongue, she probably had missed sweets just as much as Wakko. After the youngest Warner had finished her 'breakfast' she joined her brother in cleaning the kitchen. 

They worked in silent harmony until Marki entered, it was almost 8:30 AM. She looked as well rested as she possibly could given their circumstances, she smiled sweetly at her younger siblings and gave them a warm hug. "Good morning!" She chirped, kissing them both on the top of their heads. In the past they would have feigned disgust at the affection, but they all very much welcomed it now. Marki glanced at the table then to Wakko, "Thank you for 'breffass', bro." He smiled, his tongue sticking out contentedly. The elder sister picked up a single honey bun and ate it in one bite, tossing the wrapper into the large garbage bag the younger two had almost filled.

The kitchen was nearly empty, despite the fixtures, the siblings looked around at their work. "Y'all decide what theme you wanna do?" Marki asked, excitedly pulling a disorganized notebook from behind her labeled "Kitchin Ideas". "Candyland theme?" Wakko positted quizzically, as if there was a correct answer. "I've got a page for that!" The elder remarked, and opened to a page filled with ridiculous ideas of incorporating candies and sweets with the most mundane items. "How 'bout just a kitchenette?" Dot proposed, before Marki could respond a voice sounded off behind her, "Or what about 90's chic?" Yakko began, he looked at the table where his siblings had congregated, noticing the pile of pastries. "Ooooh, Wakko! Spared no expense, eh?" He stated, eyeing the spread and deciding on an apple danish. "90's chic is sooo 90's though." Marki snubbed sarcastically and gave an overdramatic shudder, causing them to chuckle at the theatrics. She had missed them, missed little moments like this. 

The four Warner siblings bounced increasingly fantastic and absurd decor ideas around the kitchen table. Much to Wakko's dismay, eventually they settled on Dot's kitchenette idea, with a 1960's inspiration. "Let's get goin'." Dot exclaimed pushing her siblings from their chairs with a playful grin that they all mirrored. It was good to be back. Now, time to shop!


End file.
